Sports

On today's episode, we discuss Facebook and Apple's next virtual and augmented reality moves, Netflix cracking down on password sharing, whether Google and Facebook killed the concept of "free," what Americans will do with their stimulus checks, how ESPN+ will do on Hulu, where in the world there is a giant plughole in the ocean, and more. Tune in to listen to the discussion with eMarketer forecasting analyst Rini Mukhopadhyay, senior analyst Sara M. Watson, analyst Blake Droesch, and principal analyst at Insider Intelligence Jeremy Goldman.

On today's episode, we discuss what an out-of-home (OOH) advertising comeback will look like and which areas are driving growth. We also examine how OOH movie theater advertising could recover, the significance of March Madness's return, when people will want to attend sporting events again, and replacing "primetime" with something more personal. Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer forecasting analyst Nazmul Islam and senior analyst at Insider Intelligence Ross Benes.

On today's episode, we discuss whether sports are the key to moving viewers from TVs to streaming platforms, if online audiences can ever rival TV viewership, and whether people will want to watch user-generated or professionally made content online. We then talk about the most interesting part of The Walt Disney Co.'s streaming endeavors, how HBO Max stacks up so far, and how this second year of virtual upfronts might be different. Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer senior analyst at Insider Intelligence Ross Benes.

Advertisers missed March Madness, too: WarnerMedia and ViacomCBS reported record demand for the tournament with one exec saying, "This is the best year we've ever had."

Streamers battle for sports rights: Media companies are hinting at new plans to use live sports to drive streaming subscriptions, which could grow the audience of sport fans who can be targeted through digital channels.

Dish dives into sports betting: Its DraftKings partnership will offer an integrated experience for satellite TV customers, as both companies jump on the rapidly growing sports betting bandwagon.

eMarketer analyst Blake Droesch, principal analyst Jeremy Goldman, and forecasting analyst at Insider Intelligence Peter Vahle discuss whether the Super Bowl delivered, what's fueling Spotify, how the podcast and social media worlds are blurring together, if reducing politics in the News Feed can help Facebook, why the shopping mall might make a comeback, what is the most relaxing song ever (statistically), and more.

Disney+ hit its subscriber goal four years ahead of schedule: It hit 94.9 million subscribers at the end of last quarter as original content drove viewership in the US and cricket boomed in India.

The not-so super Super Bowl ratings: The game reported about a 5.5% drop in total viewership, but it still draws one of the largest audiences on traditional TV.

Super Bowl streams were lower than expected: Only 20% of homes with a Roku or Chromecast streamed the big game this year, which may come as a surprise given the general consumer shift toward streaming seen during the pandemic.

eMarketer principal analysts Jeremy Goldman and Jillian Ryan, along with junior analyst at Insider Intelligence Blake Droesch, discuss the work-from-anywhere future, how this years' Super Bowl will be unique, why some retailers are skipping returns, Spotify's emotion-based recommendations, what customers want from chatbots, the ideal length of time you should dunk your Oreo in milk, and more.

Earlier this week, Mars Wrigley’s M&M's brand gave fans a sneak peak of its Super Bowl ad via Zoom, its first-ever "virtual" debut. It’s just one of several efforts the company is working on leading up to Sunday’s big game.

eMarketer senior analyst at Insider Intelligence Ross Benes discusses Netflix's Q4 earnings and market position. He then talks about whether lesser-known streaming services can make some noise, YouTube's shoppable videos, and how Peacock's exclusive streaming deal with WWE Network can make its content offering more attractive.

NBCUniversal will sunset NBCSN and add sports to USA Network: The move should help it to bolster an already valuable network and eliminate one that underperforms, as it reimagines what its sports and entertainment slate looks like.

eMarketer principal analysts Mark Dolliver and Sara M. Watson, along with junior analyst at Insider Intelligence Blake Droesch, discuss the true power of the social media giants, how Gen Z viewers like to consume sports, Twitter leaning into audio, news use on social platforms, how the pandemic has reshaped children's screen time, why people get "red eye" in photos, and more.

Kantar estimates that the slots will average $5.6 million a pop this year, reflecting the NFL’s unique ability to continue pulling in viewers and marketers.

eMarketer senior analyst Ross Benes, principal analyst Mark Dolliver, and junior analyst at Insider Intelligence Blake Droesch discuss Disney+'s price increase and content slate, Amazon's foray into healthcare, whether mothers are actually moving over to TikTok, if co-viewing is here to stay, whether Amazon can draw NFL fans with an exclusive stream, how to easily get people to agree with an essay, and more.

Giving Amazon exclusive livestreaming rights to last Saturday’s NFL game seems to have paid off—it had the highest average number of viewers per minute for a digital NFL game.

eMarketer principal analysts Mark Dolliver, Sara M. Watson, and Nicole Perrin, along with junior analyst at Insider Intelligence Blake Droesch, discuss the latest government lawsuits against Google, Twitter's new "Spaces" audio feature, 2021 Super Bowl commercials, the reception to Apple's new privacy labels, The Walt Disney Co. throwing its weight behind streaming, what all "Friends" episodes have in common, and more.